


Closure

by ElizabethTarington



Category: Original Work
Genre: AI helper, Acceptance, Depression, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Exophilia, Fluff and Angst, Hurt/Comfort, Medication, Other, Post-Break Up, Reader-Insert, Reminiscing, Robophilia, Self-Reflection, Therapy, Unpacking, cleanse by fire, getting over your ex, light that shit on fire
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-06
Updated: 2018-12-06
Packaged: 2019-09-13 01:32:38
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,154
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16883073
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ElizabethTarington/pseuds/ElizabethTarington
Summary: Pairing: Reader x Internal AIWarning: Post-break up, mentions of depression, therapy, meditation, self care.Word Count:2150Original Post: https://elizabethtarington.tumblr.com/post/174930756147/closureNote:I wanted to write a piece on a post break up situation that some people can go through. A lot of times anything can happen where both parties are to blame, sometimes it’s just one person in the relationship who is to blame. Sometimes we internalize it and other times…not so much. Sometimes we bounce back like nothing happened. Sometimes we just completely break down and it’s been years since we’ve let go of the past.I also wanted to write more about a companion type AI in the future, mostly because my husband and I both think it will be one of the big revolutionary tech pieces that we’ll have in the next 100-200 years. The concept of an AI living in your head, helping with your personal life while simultaneously growing up with you seems almost the most anti-apocalyptic way to have an AI. I am also kind of tired of the narrative where an evil AI takes over the world. This was kind of my solution/interpretation of how it might go.





	Closure

There was never a time when you didn’t have your companion AI’s voice in your head. It was installed when you were young and you had given it different names and identities over the years to suit your wants or desires. At one point you had named it Mister Bun-Bun, its voice taking on an almost goofy clown like speech pattern. Then it became Selene, a soothing and airy voice that calmed your nerves once you hit your teen years. But since high school, your companion had become and stayed Taylor. You liked its name. It went with Taylor’s androgynous voice, a mixture of equal parts male and female blending seamlessly into one that you couldn’t even tell the two apart.

Growing up with Taylor was what most would consider a typical experience. It was the voice in your head that let you know when you were feeling intense emotions and give suggestions based on what you liked and didn’t like. More often than not, Taylor was constantly reminding you to drink more water or that eating potato chips was an unwise decision for a meal substitute.

Your own personal assistant. One that didn’t judge you. Didn’t do anything to hurt you or call you hurtful names. Didn’t cheat on you with some young new thing that looked like a doppelganger of you.

“You’re thinking about him again.” Taylor’s voice spoke softly, interrupting your thoughts as you stared blankly ahead.

“That’s kind of what happens when I’m trying to meditate.”

“The doctor said the point of meditation was to clear your mind. You are reminiscing and then you started to think about-”

“Yes, I know. Thank you, Taylor.” You huffed, shifting your weight from side to side as you sat in the silence of your home. “Maybe if I had some white noise in the background, it might help.”

“I shall turn on the OceanScapes soundtrack with the volume at 20 percent.”

“Thank you, Taylor.”

You tried closing your eyes again, straightening your back with your hands resting in your lap. The soothing sounds of waves crashing against rocks filled your head. One deep breath in through your nose and out through your mouth. Inhale. Exhale. Inhale. Exhale.

For a moment it was working, you were blanking your mind, letting any lingering emotions or thoughts fade away, but as soon as you heard a knock at your door, you gave up.

“Turn it off, Taylor. I’ll try again later.” You stood, stretching as you walked to the door.

“Shall I turn on the alternative station?”

“No. Just the quiet is fine.”

Opening the door, you were greeted by a drone with a package. It spoke your name and asked you to sign before giving you the small box. You knew what it was and had been waiting all day for your medication to be dropped off. Your doctor had given you a new prescription to help cope with your depression. Coupled with therapy once a week, you were starting to feel a little bit better since the inevitable break up.

It was still hard. All of it. You had moved to a new place, unable to stay in what you had considered your home for a long time despite the fact that he left first. Four years of being with someone and you just couldn’t bear staying in the apartment you had once shared. Now, a year later and you still had boxes that needed to be unpacked. Still had a hard time getting out of bed, brushing your teeth or washing your hair.

The therapy was helping. You had to be retaught how to take care of yourself and you couldn’t imagine doing it on your own without Taylor. The companion AI was always able to coax you out of bed, always explaining that while it was hard, you’d feel better by taking care of yourself.

Often while you showered and got ready for the day, even if it meant only changing into clean pajamas, Taylor would use the house’s robotics system and cook you an adequate breakfast. Usually egg whites with toast and a fruit smoothie that Taylor put any vitamins you were lacking. You would eat it down, never complaining as Taylor only informed you of basic news, careful not to telling you anything remotely depressing. It knew your mood would tank and you would head back to bed, not crawling out until the next day.

It all helped. The anti-depressants. Therapy. But mostly, Taylor helped, you thought to yourself as you opened the package, taking out your new prescription

“You don’t do yourself enough credit, you know.”

You stared down at the label on the bottle, double checking everything, “Well, I’m sure I’d just be sleeping in bed for the rest of my life.”

“You’d get up eventually, it might just take some more time.”

“Probably longer. Much longer for sure.”

“Since meditation wasn’t doing anything for you, should we tackle another box?”

You glanced to the corner of the living room, seeing your pile of boxes that was substantially smaller than last month, or the month before that, “Yeah. I should.”

“Remember, you can stop at any time.”

“I know.” You set the bottle down on the counter and did your best not to drag your feet across the room. “Just one box, right? I can do that.”

You mentally counted the boxes, only seeing five left. You swallowed nervously, knowing that these last boxes were very likely going to contain pictures or mementos that would bring back a flood of memories. Cautiously, you looked at each of the labels. The word decorations scrawled in your handwriting was on every one of them.

“For the next time, perhaps labeling them more specifically might be helpful. I will make a note on your behalf.”

“Thanks, Taylor.”

You did your best not be sarcastic or rude as you took the box on the top. Carrying it to the coffee table and setting it down, you couldn’t help but wonder if you chose the wrong box. You bit your lip and folded your arms closely to your body, before glancing back at the pile once more.

“The chances of grabbing a box that has things in relation to him is very likely regardless of box. However, this box is smaller than the others, so it should be easier to deal with than the others.” Taylor’s voice didn’t urge you forward as you turned your attention back to the box in front of you, “Remember, you can stop whenever you’d like. This is a big step and while it’s good that you’re trying to move on, be patient with yourself. If it’s too much, why don’t you go tidy up your bedroom and do some laundry instead.”

You closed your eyes and took a breath, “I want to try. I need to move on and the only way to do that is to actually look at this stuff.”

“Okay, you can do this. I believe in you.”

You laughed, feeling your muscles relax as you opened your eyes and reached for the box. It was smaller. But just because it was small didn’t mean that whatever was inside would hurt less. You knew the very opposite was often true.

Wasting no time, you peeled the tape away and opened the top, stopping to breathe and stare up at the ceiling. Finally, you worked up the nerve and looked inside. You stared down blankly unsure of what to feel as you saw several mementos from him. Pictures. Stuffed animals. Trinkets and movie stubs. You had put it all into a small box, tossed it angrily, not caring if anything got busted.

Sure enough two picture frames were broken with glass scattered across the bottom of the box, bits and pieces caught in the fur of the stuffies. You frowned down at the box, for a moment not daring to breath as you held it in your chest until finally the burning sensation caught you. Exhale. Inhale.

You weren’t sure how you would react. You had imagined throwing the box. Crying. Screaming. But as you stared down at the contents of the box you sunk down into a chair, cradling the box against your chest.

“Is this everything, Taylor?” You asked, tenderly picking up a picture.

“Yes.”

“You knew it was this box, didn’t you?”

“I did.”

Careful to avoid any glass, you picked up memento after memento, each one bringing back a different memory. A different emotion to linger and burn into your heart. Some flaring you up with happiness, others with laughter, some with sadness. But as you stared at the entirety of your past relationship you found yourself hit with a realization.

“It wasn’t all bad.”

“I don’t believe so, but I think that perhaps you two were a less than perfect fit.”

“You’re right. We were very different in many aspects. I thought that perhaps maybe the idea of opposites attract suited us, but I don’t think I realized just how opposite we were.” You paused, looking at a couple of movie stubs, “He always wanted to hang around with other people—always wanted to go out, and I just hated it. I always had a miserable time and I didn’t like his friends either. We’d always come home with me being overly exhausted and cranky. Why didn’t I just tell him I didn’t want that? Why did I compromise so much when I clearly didn’t want to?”

“You liked him and you wanted him to like and appreciate you and the sacrifices you made for him.”

“That’s—really stupid.” You chuckled, shaking your head as you tossed the movie stubs back into the box. “I should have just done what I wanted and stayed home. He could have easily gone out without me. It’s not like we needed to be joined at the hip.”

“Indeed, you did not.”

“Still—it wasn’t always bad. He still did a lot for me—for us.”

“He did, but he still should have broke it off instead of cheating.” Taylor reminded.

“I agree. We both should have ended it earlier. I wasn’t happy after the second year. I was stressed with college and just couldn’t handle balancing a relationship and the schoolwork. Then my internship happened and I was just beyond miserable.” You paused, picking up a different picture, pulling it from it’s broken frame, “He must have been unhappy too.”

A smiling couple from the not so distant past smiled up at you. It was taken during a party that your friend had dragged you to and where you met him. He was average, but he made you laugh at the party and saved you from what could have been a potentially embarrassing situation when someone passed you the karaoke mic. He sang offbeat and out of tune with the song, making it seem like you were a normal singer by anyone’s standards.

“It wasn’t all bad.” You murmured, touching his smiling face as you smirked only pulling them back as an idea struck you, “We have a fire pit in the back, right?”

“Yes, we do.”

“Is there a burn ordinance in effect right now?”

“Nope.”

“I’m thinking I just get rid of this stuff. There’s no need to unpack it and put it anywhere.”

“I agree.”

“Wait, really?”

“Yes. The fire stick is in the drawer opposite of the oven. I suggest we do it now before the winds pick up later today.”

Tossing the mementos back into the box, you carried it into the kitchen, finding the fire stick with little problem. Feeling a strange and almost foreign sense of giddiness, you walked outside and found the stone pit undisturbed. You placed the box in the middle and lit the edges of the box before stepping back to watch it burn.

“You planned this didn’t you?”

“It was your doctor and her companion AI’s idea actually. I just happened to agree with them.”

You stood back, folding your arms as a small smile rose from the corners of your mouth, “Most people do this right away after getting jilted.”

“I’d say about 50 percent would do this right away. The other 50 percent would do what you did.”

“Blame myself, squash down my feelings until I could barely function as a person, only now reaching a point where closure might be attainable?”

“I’m surprised you were paying attention during that session.” Taylor chuckled in your head.

“I pay attention, whether I believe it or not is a different story.” You paused watching as the fire reached the stuffed animal, singeing the plastic fur. “This is kind of therapeutic for now. I don’t imagine tomorrow is going to feel like this, or even later tonight. But right now it feels good.”

“It will get better, I promise.”

You smiled and nodded, “I believe you’re right, Taylor. I believe you are right.”


End file.
